'We Continue the Change' and 'Democratic Bulgaria' Will Register Two Separate Parliamentary Groups (update)

We Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria (WCC–DB) will register two separate parliamentary groups in the new National Assembly, according to an agreement reached by MPs elected on the coalition’s joint list.

Ten days after the elections, a split has emerged within the “We Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria” coalition.

Tomorrow, at the opening of the 52nd National Assembly, the coalition will register two separate parliamentary groups. As a result, “Democratic Bulgaria” and the Democrats for a Strong Bulgaria (DSB) will have 21 MPs, while “We Continue the Change” will have 16 MPs.

The development follows a series of tensions and speculation, and a nearly three-hour meeting at the DSB headquarters on April 29.

From “We Continue the Change”, a proposal has been put forward for a parliamentary alliance focused on joint policies.

This means the three parties would continue working together on specific policy areas, including agreeing on a single candidate for the upcoming presidential elections, as well as a joint candidate—Traicho Traikov—for the partial local elections in the Sofia “Sredets” district. They would also cooperate in municipal councils.

They remain united on key policies they have already discussed.

Asen Vasilev has denied that the split is due to the ordering of electoral lists. He entered the National Assembly from Plovdiv, leaving Manol Peykov without a seat in the new Parliament.

From the Democrats for a Strong Bulgaria (DSB) and Democratic Bulgaria, it has been commented that the division represents a serious political mistake, and that every effort had been made for the formation to remain united.

Asen Vasilev, leader of “We Continue the Change”: “What has become clear is that two parliamentary groups will be registered. What we proposed to our colleagues, and they said they would consider, is a joint parliamentary alliance for coordinated action.”

tanas Atanasov, leader of the Democrats for a Strong Bulgaria (DSB): “As the leader of DSB, I argued this evening before the joint forum that the division into parliamentary groups is a serious political mistake, which creates risks for Bulgaria’s development. We were together with our colleagues from ‘Yes, Bulgaria’ in favour of preserving unity.”

Bozhidar Bozhanov, co-chair of “Yes, Bulgaria”: “I want to address our voters — we made every effort to preserve the unity of the parliamentary group. From Democratic Bulgaria, we continue to be a guarantor of the country’s modernisation and its European path.”